Yi Rang clung to Alice and whined.
Alice answered, visibly troubled.
As Alice finally gave in, Yu-Han watched from the side with a demonic smile.
It was the sort of smile that seemed to say, "I'll make you regret crawling in here on your own feet."
That was how Yi Rang and Alice became roommates.
Soon, they were close enough to speak casually.
They lay on their beds in the sleeping quarters, chatting.
"Anyhow! I ditched that damn high school and jumped into sanctioner training because I heard it paid well. They even gave out support grants!"
"...Into a profession filled with blood and slaughter?"
"They told me I only had to catch monsters and bad guys! But after all that brutal training... I already had the license. I couldn't exactly refuse to work. So here I am."
"Huh..."
Alice realized there had been someone else with naive thoughts like hers.
More importantly, did a sanctioner license require a training course?
The thought left her uneasy.
"Anyway, Alice! I spilled my past, so shouldn't you spill yours too?"
"My past? I was told not to talk about it carelessly..."
"Well, some friends live such ordinary lives they've got nothing to talk about! Gyahaha!"
Yi Rang's words pricked Alice's pride.
So Alice revealed her identity on the spot.
"I am Seong Yu-Hwa, the daughter of the President!"
"Eh...?"
"But when I woke up, I was trapped in this robot body!"
"...A-a robot? You ain't human?"
Apparently, Yi Rang had not even realized Alice was a robot.
Alice looked human, but her eyes were red, and beam swords had popped out from her wrists during combat before.
Yi Rang still seemed unconvinced.
She pulled on Alice's cheek.
"How can a robot be this soft and squishy...?
...Wait. Seong Yu-Hwa is alive and perfectly fine."
"Exactly! That's what I'm wondering too!"
Even Yi Rang seemed to find it hard to believe that Alice was Seong Yu-Hwa.
"Then... why don't you contact the Cheongwa Tower?"
"I tried. They treated me like a mental patient."
"Then go there in person?"
"I tried that too! But a terrorist attacked the EV at the worst possible time, so I couldn't go!"
At that, Yi Rang gave her a puzzled look.
"The EV's already fixed."
"Wait, what...?"
Come to think of it, Alice had been so busy with the recent blood festival that she had not paid attention to it at all...!
---
The next morning, Alice dragged Yu-Han toward the EV again.
Old Seoul, covered beneath New Seoul, was lit by morning-use artificial lights.
According to the government, the light was supposedly 99% identical to real sunlight.
"Yaaawn... You are interrupting my precious sleep..."
"You said you'd help me! I played along with your Euthanasia Center and everything, so help me properly!"
"Don't get it twisted. I said I'd help with my spare energy. I never said I'd put aside my other work for you."
"Oh, aren't you impressive."
As Alice huffed in frustration, someone suddenly called out from behind.
"Excuse me, hold on a second!?"
The two turned around.
A pretty girl stood there, with dyed-blonde hair and a trendy, urban look.
"...What?"
"Oppa over there... could I get your name and contact info? You're totally my type!"
Alice's face crumpled at once.
She sincerely tried to warn the girl.
"I don't know who you are, but dating someone based on his face alone is not a good choice. Seriously."
"Is this... a robot? Why comfort your loneliness with something like this? Come play with me instead."
The girl ignored Alice and stepped closer to Yu-Han.
Yu-Han smiled, looking oddly satisfied.
Alice's eyebrow began to twitch.
"You... what about helping me?"
"Just watch quietly."
"Yeah~! A robot shouldn't interfere in human affairs!"
Alice's anger toward both the mysterious girl and Yu-Han began to boil over.
Then Yu-Han suddenly grabbed the girl's wrist.
"Kyaack...! You're too rough..."
"Drop the act. What is this?"
Yu-Han was already holding a small knife he had stolen from her pocket.
A transparent liquid coated the blade.
According to Alice's AI analysis, it was a deadly toxin.
"Ugh... since when...!"
"A girl at the bottom like you would naturally favor a honey trap. Did you think I wouldn't guard against something so basic?"
"H-help me—!"
"If you're prepared to kill others, you should be prepared to die the same way."
Yu-Han tried to drive the poisoned knife into the girl's shoulder without hesitation.
At that moment, part of a snake's body appeared and blocked the blade.
"Partial summoning magic, I see."
"I see... your head really is worth tens of millions of won!"
The girl's attitude changed instantly.
A boy appeared beside her and teleported them both far away.
There was no need to explain it.
It was teleportation magic.
"Fine. I didn't want to use anything this flashy, but I guess it's time for force!"
"I told you we shouldn't have used a honey trap..."
"Quiet!"
The boy and girl, who seemed to be a couple, bickered even with an enemy in front of them.
Yu-Han explained with a bored look.
"That girl is Na Ye-Jin, a summoning magic specialist. The boy with her is Go Geon-Woo, a teleportation magic user."
"You... how do you know our names!"
"I always collect information on skilled people."
"You crazy stalker freak...!!"
Na Ye-Jin opened a smart hologram screen before her eyes.
The screen glowed, projecting a magic circle into the air.
Something emerged from it.
It was a bird, its entire body wreathed in flames.
[I am the Divine Beast, Phoenix... I have answered the summons.]
"Good, Phoenix! Erase those two from the world!"
[...Did your guardian not tell you to avoid unnecessary conflict?]
"Ugh...! Don't talk back to me! You're just a summon!"
To everyone else, Na Ye-Jin looked as if she were talking to herself.
After all, the summon could not speak aloud.
Alice whispered to Yu-Han.
"That girl... she seems mentally unstable..."
"I think the summon is nagging her through telepathy. Birds don't have human-like vocal cords."
At last, Na Ye-Jin reached a dramatic agreement with the Phoenix and shouted with confidence.
"Go, Phoenix! Destroy those punks who talked about me like I'm crazy!"
"...So she heard that."
Alice thought Na Ye-Jin had remarkably sharp ears.
"A summon... Usually, you can neutralize it by taking out the summoner, but..."
"But what?"
"If the summoner is with a teleporter, the answer is obvious. The summoner can keep running while the summon fights."
As soon as Yu-Han finished speaking, Go Geon-Woo teleported away with Na Ye-Jin.
Catching the summoner now seemed almost impossible.
Soon, the Phoenix screeched and began spewing torrents of flame.
"Sorry, but this robot has fireproofing—Ow!"
The Phoenix's flame grazed Alice.
She felt a searing pain and hurriedly dodged.
It was the first pain she had felt in this robot body.
"Wait, I shouldn't even have pain sensors in this body...!?"
"It seems to be a flame that acts directly on the soul and mind. I'll have to kill the summoner myself."
Yu-Han waved his hand and vanished with stealth magic.
"Wait! You! You're leaving me alone with this crazy bird!?"
No answer came back.
Only the Phoenix's fierce flames responded.
Alice climbed up a building wall and barely avoided the flames.
But she knew it was only a struggle.
No matter how well she moved, she could not fully escape a biological flamethrower that could fly and chase her.
[Child, can you hear my voice?]
A clear voice echoed inside Alice's head.
It was kind and benevolent, like the voice of a holy mother.
"Damn it. Are you God? Then please do something about this crazy bird in front of me. Quickly!!"
[...I am the bird to which you are referring.]
"Ah... I'm sorry."
The bird only looked at Alice.
Its attack had stopped.
Alice cautiously climbed back down.
"Aren't you the enemy?"
[A summon is bound by contract. That child ordered me to attack you, so I must obey. However, how quickly I carry out the order is left to my discretion.]
"Why?"
[Because I do not wish for those children to sink deeper into the path of slaughter. This world has already been drenched in blood and madness...]
"You're right... this world is too strange!"
Alice felt as if the Phoenix had smiled gently.
[As I thought... you possess a righteous and resilient soul. Then, would you form a contract with me and purify this world?]
"I don't know if I should do that so carelessly... You already have a contractor."
[As one who holds love for all humanity, I often contract with several people at once. Please read the terms carefully. I shall serve you with absolute obedience.]
The contract terms flowed directly into Alice's mind.
Absolute obedience as a summon.
Only the truth when questioned.
And various other restrictions.
No matter how Alice looked at it, she had nothing to lose.
"Alright... then I'll trust you."
[And your name?]
"Alice... no, Seong Yu—"
[The contract is sealed.]
A brilliant light enveloped them.
The magical contract was complete.
[I look forward to working with you, Alice.]
"But what now? The order that girl gave you is still active..."
[Do not worry. That child's heart will soon change.]
---
Meanwhile, Go Geon-Woo and Na Ye-Jin were busy fleeing through repeated teleports.
"Damn it... how is that stubborn bastard still following us!"
"Can't you summon one more creature!?"
"Do you have any idea how much mana the Phoenix drains?! I can't!"
Yu-Han kept appearing and chasing them.
Only the user should know where a teleport leads.
Yet somehow, Yu-Han followed.
At last, they reached an alleyway.
Yu-Han was nowhere to be seen.
"Did we lose him...?"
The two tried to calm their pounding hearts.
But Yu-Han was already clinging invisibly to the alley wall.
Thinking I'm gone just because you can't see me... how foolish.
He had dropped his stealth on purpose earlier.
It was all to make them lower their guard.
Yu-Han leapt from the wall and swung his carbon-coated blade, aiming to decapitate them both at once.
"Stop it, Yu-Han. You two, as well."
A large man appeared and blocked Yu-Han's strike with a spear.
Na Ye-Jin and Go Geon-Woo stared in shock at both him and Yu-Han.
"Jeon Seok-Hyeon C. It's been a while."
"...Let us all lower our weapons first. I apologize for the fight these children started."
Go Geon-Woo and Na Ye-Jin were left speechless.
"Father, you two know each other...?"
Jeon Seok-Hyeon sent his weapon back with reverse-summoning.
Then he rapped Go Geon-Woo and Na Ye-Jin on the head.
"Yu-Han is as good as my own brother. To you two, he is practically an uncle. So apologize. And send Pheonix-Nim back."
"W-we're sorry..."
The two reluctantly apologized to Yu-Han.
He still looked displeased.
"These two adorable kids, apparently my niece and nephew, just tried to kill me. You aren't planning to end this with one simple apology, are you?"
"Yu-Han, please. For my sake, can you let it slide this once...? I will repay this debt."
"Haa... if you put it that way."
Only then did Yu-Han put away his blade.
Seeing his killing intent, Go Geon-Woo and Na Ye-Jin vowed never to touch this crazy uncle again.
---
"I see. I wondered why such a bounty had been placed on you. So it was Kim Je-Hyeon's doing..."
"We had no idea. We are truly sorry! Auntie Alice!!"
"...Don't do it again. But wait, why am I an auntie?"
Go Geon-Woo grinned and explained.
"Well, since Yu-Han C turned out to be our uncle, his companion Alice C is practically our auntie..."
At that moment, murderous intent flashed in both Yu-Han's and Alice's eyes.
Na Ye-Jin and Go Geon-Woo felt their lives in danger and teleported away.
"Mmm... I'm truly sorry. I'll scold those two properly at home. And as an apology, I'll clear the path for you."
Jeon Seok-Hyeon suddenly summoned a spear and threw it sideways without looking.
Something that looked like an assassin was pinned to the wall, a spear through the top of its skull.
"I also work as a freelance sanctioner. Contact me if you need anything."
Jeon Seok-Hyeon sent them his electronic business card, then left to clear out the other assassins.
"Yu-Han... you had an older brother?"
"As if. I don't have family."
"But that man treated you like..."
"People at rock bottom cling to the idea of family. I won't fall for that illusion again. They're useful only as long as they can be used."
"Haa... Fine."
Alice let out a heavy sigh.
Technically, though, it was only intake and exhaust.